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Abstract

Background/objective

Perforation peritonitis is the most common surgical emergency in India. The spectrum
of etiology of perforation in Tropical countries continues to be different from its
Western counterpart. The objective of the study was to highlight the spectrum of perforation peritonitis as encountered
by us at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Chandigarh.

Methods

Five hundred and four consecutive cases of perforation peritonitis over a period of
five years were reviewed in terms of clinical presentation, operative findings and
postoperative course retrospectively at GMCH, Chandigarh.

Results

The most common cause of perforation in our series was perforated duodenal ulcer (289
cases) followed by appendicitis (59 cases), gastrointestinal perforation due to blunt
trauma abdomen (45 cases), typhoid fever (41 cases) and tuberculosis (20 cases). Despite
delay in seeking medical treatment (53%), the overall mortality (10%) was favourably
comparable with other published series though the overall morbidity (50%) was unusually
high.

Conclusion

In contrast to western literature, where lower gastrointestinal tract perforations
predominate, upper gastrointestinal tract perforations constitute the majority of
cases in India. The increasing incidence of post-traumatic gastro-enteric injuries
may be due to an increase in high speed motor vehicle accidents which warrant early
recognition and prompt treatment to avoid serious complications and death.

Background

Perforation peritonitis is the most common surgical emergency in India. Despite advances
in surgical techniques, antimicrobial therapy and intensive care support, management
of peritonitis continues to be highly demanding, difficult and complex. The spectrum
of etiology of perforation continues to be different from that of western countries[1] and there is paucity of data from India regarding it's etiology, prognostic indicators,
morbidity and mortality patterns[2]. Our study was designed to highlight the spectrum of perforation peritonitis as encountered
by us at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) Chandigarh.

Patients and methods

A retrospective analysis of 504 patients of perforation peritonitis was done over
a period of last five years at GMCH Chandigarh.

Inclusion criteria

All cases found to have peritonitis as a result of perforation of any part of gastrointestinal
tract at the time of surgery were included in the study.

Exclusion criteria

All cases with either primary peritonitis or that due to anastomotic dehiscence were
excluded.

All cases were studied in term of clinical presentation, radiological investigations
done, operative findings and postoperative course. Data was colleted from indoor patient
records, operation theatre records and outpatient department follow up of cases.

All patients following a clinical diagnosis of perforation peritonitis and adequate
resuscitation, underwent exploratory laparotomy in emergency setting. At surgery the
source of contamination was sought for and controlled. The peritoneal cavity was irrigated
with 5–6 litres of warm normal saline and the decision to insert a drain was left
to the discretion of the operating surgeon. Abdomen was closed with continuous, number
one non-absorbable suture material. Although all patients received appropriate perioperative
broad spectrum antibiotics, the drug regimen was not uniform.

Results

A total of 504 patients were studied. Mean age was 36.8 years(range from 3 to 90 years)
with majority of patients being males(84%), 16% were in the age group of more than
50 years and 24% of the patients had atleast one pre-existing medical illness (Table
1).

The time taken by the patient between onset of symptoms and presentation to the hospital
was less than 24 hours in 235(47%) cases and more than 24 hours in 269(53%) cases.
The time taken for resuscitation, diagnosis and preparation of patient for surgery
was less than 12 hours in 396(79%) and more than 12 hours in 108(21%) patints.

The clinical presentation of the patients varied according to the site of perforation
(Table 1). The patint of duodenal ulcer perforation usually had a short history of pain starting
in epigastrium or upper abdomen along with generalized tenderness and guarding. 13%
of patints had positive history of NSAID consumption.

The patients with small bowel perforation presented with prolonged history of fever
followed by the appearance of pain in lower abdomen. Abdominal distention was found
in 68% along with vomiting in 60% and constipation in 41% cases. 15% of the patients
were in shock at the time of admission. Only 55% had evidence of pneumoperitoneum
on chest X-Ray done in erect posture.

Appendicular perforations had characteristic pain starting in the periumbilical area
or right iliac fossa along with vomiting(66%) and fever(43%). They had localized guarding(77%)
or rebound tenderness in right iliac fossa(68%). Perrectal digital examination showed
tenderness in 54% cases. None of the patients of appendicular perforation showed evidence
of gas under diaphragm on erect chest X-Ray.

Acid peptic disease was the most common cause of gastroduodenal perforation(90%) whereas
typhoid fever was the most common cause of small bowel perforation(45%) followed by
tuberculosis(22%) and trauma(15%) (Table 2).

In majority of patients(83%) the peritonitis was generalized and the contamination
was either purulent or fecal(84%). The other operative findings and surgical procedures
performed are as illustrated in Table 2.

251 of 504 cases incurred postoperative complications (Table 3). The morbidity rate in our study was significantly higher in the patients with intestinal
perforation(68%) than those with gastroduodenal perforation(47%). In perforated small
bowel patients, the presenting complaints were higher in contrast to the patients
of gastroduodenal perforation.

The overall mortality rate in our study was 10% (Table 3) with septicemia associated with MOSF being the most common cause of death in 30
cases(59%) followed by respiratory complications in 12(20%), acute myocardial infarction
in 3(6%), pulmonary embolism in 2(4%) and anastomotic leak in 4(8%)cases. Factors
contributing to mortality were advanced age, perforation presenting after 24 hours
and respiratory complications.

Discussion

Perforation peritonitis is a frequently encountered surgical emergency in tropical
countries like India, most commonly affecting young men in the prime of life as compared
to the studies in the west[3] where the mean age is between 45–60 years. In majority of cases the presentation
to the hospital is late with well established generalized peritonitis with purulent/fecal
contamination and varying degree of septicemia. The signs and symptoms are typical
and it is possible to make a clinical diagnosis of peritonitis in all patients.

The perforations of proximal gastrointestinal tract were six times as common as perforations
of distal gastrointestinal tract as has been noted in earlier studies from India[1], which is in sharp contrast to studies from developed countries like United States[4], Greece[5] and Japan[6] which revealed that distal gastrointestinal tract perforations were more common.

Not only the site but the etiological factors also show a wide geographical variation.
Khanna et al[7] from Varanasi studied 204 consecutive cases of gastrointestinal perforation and found
that over half(108 cases) were due to typhoid. They also had perforations due to duodenal
ulcer(58), appendicitis(9), amoebiasis(8) and tuberculosis(4). These figures show
the importance of infection and infestation in the third world which is also reflected
in the high incidence of typhoid and tubercular perforation in our study. At the other
end of the spectrum, Noon et al[8] from Texas studied 430 patients of gastrointestinal perforation and found 210 cases
to be due to penetrating trauma, 92 due to appendicitis and 68 due to peptic ulcer.
This shows the importance of trauma in developed countries. However, the increased
incidence of gastrointestinal perforations due to blunt trauma in the present series(9%)
and 21% in another study by Bose et al[9] from PGIMER Chandigarh, may be due to high speed road traffic accidents on national
highway near Chandigarh.

Duodenal to gastric ulcer ratio was 7:1 in the present series and 15:1 noted in an
earlier study from India[1]. Contrary to this the ratio is 4:1 in studies from United Kingdom[10] and United States[11].

There were 51(10%) deaths within 30 postoperative day which is comparable with other
published series [10-12] despite delay in seeking medical treatment. This was probably because of lower mean
age(which is a factor determining mortality) of patients in our study. The main cause
of death in the present series of patients was septicemia(59%). Therefore contamination
is a crucial consideration in patients with peritonitis and problem of mortality is
a problem of infection. So by early surgical intervention, we succeed in preventing
further contamination by removing the source of infection though the end result will
also depend upon the general host resistance and the antibiotic sensitivity of the
organism[13].

The major cause of postoperative morbidity were respiratory complications(28%) e.g.
pneumonia, atelectasis, pleural effusion or ARDS, wound infection(25%), septicemia(18%)
and dyselectrolaemia(17%) which are preventable and should be detected early and aggressively
treated. Unacceptably high incidence of abdominal wall disruption(9%) in the present
series was multifactorial due to delayed presentation, gross contamination of peritoneal
cavity, septicemia and above all the faulty methods of abdominal closure as majority
of our patients were operated by inexperienced resident doctors who are a floating
population and are still in the learning curve.

To conclude, the spectrum of perforation peritonitis in India continues to be different
from its western counterpart with duodenal ulcer perforation, perforating appendicitis,
typhoid perforation and tubercular perforation being the major causes of generalized
peritonitis. The increasing incidence of hollow visceral injuries due to blunt abdominal
trauma is a diagnostic dilemma for the surgeons and warrants early recognition and
prompt treatment to avoid major morbidity and mortality.